Never Going Back Again
by RokuKuKyu
Summary: Headcanon for the missing scene in Rumours: Santana comforts Brittany after Artie insults her.


They hadn't spoken since the previous day's showdown and it was obvious they had missed each other's company. The normally flooded halls were empty now as the last few classroom doors shut with soft clicks of the knobs. Brittany composed herself enough to sit up straight on the bench and turn to her forever constant rock.

"Santana?"

The raven haired girl's arm had already dropped from the shoulder of the blond when she suddenly moved but she still held a firm grasp at her waist. She lifted her right hand to Brittany's face and softly laid her fingertips atop the last few painful tears that ran from the girl's left eye. Caused by mere words. No one had ever put such power into words as Brittany did. It was a wonder they were so compatible with the way Santana was hurtful with her own words. But never against her Brittany. She let her fingers linger a moment to capture any renegade drops before she rested her hand on the other girl's bare knee.

"Yeah, Brit?"

"If I tell you something, you promise not to be mad?"

She sniffled a bit and the subtle noise caused the biggest tear in Santana's heart. How could she even fathom anger at a time like this?

"I promise."

"Swear it."

"I swear it."

"Pinky swear?"

Santana laughed as she flipped her hand over, offering her pinky to the mouse like girl. Brittany gingerly locked her own left pinky with the waiting finger as she took a deep breath. Her eyelashes fluttered away the dampness of her tears and she stared into Santana's eyes, seeking shelter.

"I knew what I was doing."

Santana's eyes slanted inquisitively as she began to question what her better half was implying to her. But Brittany did not look away nor did she give her friend a chance to speak.

"When I said you play for another team. I knew what it would look like. I just wanted to give you a chance to come clean. And I knew that if it came from me first I could just say that's not what I meant. "

Santana's eyes widened with… shock? Rage? Confusion? She didn't know how to identify it but whatever it was she was feeling, it was intense. Her grip tightened around Brittany's waist as she struggled to find the words necessary for the situation. Normally a master of conversation and wit, she was at a loss for any of her normal "charm". But, again, Brittany was on her A game. She swooped her right arm around Santana's waist and pulled her closer, their bodies making a circle with clasped pinkies and touching hips. She slid her hand up the dark haired girl's back until it rested on her neck, beneath the heavy warm locks of her hair. She mimicked the soothing action of slowly caressing the skin there, just as Santana had done with her hair earlier. She waited patiently as her love's eyes began to soften and the slightest evidence of sadness danced across them.

"I love you, Santana. No matter what. I love you. And I know you feel the same way about me but I am dying for you to feel the same way about YOU. You don't realize how much it hurts me to see you hurting. I don't care what anybody else thinks. You're incredible and I want to be able to tell the world that. And to tell them that you are mine. I'm just trying to do what I can to help you but it's really really hard."

Santana lightly nodded her head in agreement as the first tear fell. Before it reached her chin, Brittany quickly chased it with her lips, kissing Santana on the cheek sweetly. Santana's body tensed up at the unabashed display of affection but Brittany's thumb steadily stroking the back of her neck relaxed her quickly. She breathed lightly through her agape mouth as Brittany placed small butterfly kisses along her face til she reached her ear.

"I can wait for you," she whispered, unlocking their pinkies as she ran her hand up Santana's thigh, "but I hope you don't take too long."

The silent girl felt a tingle in her chest as the words resounded in her mind. The physical contact was too much for the moment and the environment but she loved this girl. She had pushed her away so many times and at that moment, to push her away would be the worst possible move she could make. So she did the opposite. She turned her own face, brushing cheek against cheek, until nothing but millimeters of air separated their lips. She stared her resignation into the blue eyes that captivated her with every look. For a minute she let herself forget about the existence of William McKinley High School. She ignored the definition of "normal" by society's standards. She let go of all her reservations and impending ostracizing. She forgot everything but the only true thing she had ever known. Love. She drowned herself in it as she fell into Brittany's lips with pure abandon. Every part of her body lit up at the contact, just as it did every time she let herself be herself. Something she could only be with Brittany. She held on to the girl, taking the kiss for everything it was worth and more. Brittany's soft caressing of Santana's neck had turned into a fierce grip of desperation, reminding Santana that they were in fact in a public high school in the middle of Lima, Ohio. As realization set in, she could feel the sparking sensation settle down and she parted their lips but not their bodies. A smirk nestled upon the blonde girl's face as she bashfully rested her head on the orange shirted shoulder of the brunette.

"Does that mean you forgive me?"

Santana gently rested her chin on the soft blonde pillow on her shoulder as she mulled over the question.

"It means I love you… and the way you love me."

"And you forgive me?"

"You promise next time to wait for me?"

Brittany held up her pinky in front of them. Santana accepted it.

"I forgive you."


End file.
